=Meiophylly.=--A diminished number of leaves in a whorl occasionally takes place; thus, in some of the _Stellatae_, and frequently in _Paris quadrifolia_, the number of leaves in the verticil is reduced. Care must be exercised in such instances that an apparent diminution arising from a fusion of two or more leaves be not confounded with suppression. =Meiophylly of the calyx or perianth.=--A lessened number of sepals is not a very common occurrence among dicotyledonous plants. Seringe figures a proliferous flower of _Arabis alpina_ with two sepals only, and a similar occurrence has been noticed in _Diplotaxis tenuifolia_. In _Cattleya violacea_ the writer has met with a flower in which the uppermost sepal was entirely wanting, while two of the lateral petals were fused together. Moquin records that in some of the flowers of _Chenopodiaceae_, in which the inflorescence is dense, a suppression of two or three sepals sometimes occurs. The species mentioned are _Ambrina ambrosioides_, _Chenopodium glaucum_, and _Blitum polymorphum_. =Meiophylly of the corolla.=--Suppression of one or more petals is of more frequent occurrence than the corresponding deficiency in the case of the sepals. Among _Caryophyllaceae_ imperfection as regards the numerical symmetry of the flower is not uncommon, as in species of _Cerastium_, _Sagina_, _Dianthus_, &c. In _Ranunculaceae_ the petals are likewise not unfrequently partially or wholly suppressed. A familiar illustration of this is afforded by _Ranunculus auricomus_, in which it is the exception to find the corolla perfect.[466] Some varieties of _Corchorus acutangulus_ in west tropical Africa are likewise subject to the same peculiarity. Amongst _Papilionaceae_ absence of the carina or of the alae is not uncommon, as in _Trifolium repens_, _Faba vulgaris_, &c. Moquin relates a case of the kind in the haricot bean, in which the carina was entirely absent, and another in the pea, where both carina and alae were missing, thus reducing the flower to the condition that is normal in _Amorpha_ and _Afzelia_. Suppression of the upper lip in such flowers as _Calceolaria_ has been termed by Morren "apilary."